Unlike many birds whose name seems odd and contrary to their appearance this bird is true to his name. It does have a black crown and it does spend time hunting for food at night. Typically you will find them around water where they can find something to eat such as fish, frogs and other morsels.
This is an adult Black-crowned Night Heron. It is very distinctively marked with the black crown, white head plume and gray coloration. Both male and female look similar. Note the large feet. They build stick nests in trees so have a good use for those feet and they nest in groups that often include other species, such as other herons, egrets, and ibis.
Black-crowned Night Heron are typically 23-28 inches in height and have a wingspan of a little less than four feet.
This is a juvenile of the species. Completely different in coloration, brown streaks on the front and they lack the black cap and grayish coloration. They leave the nest at about 1 month of age but cannot fly until they are 6 weeks old. They move through the vegetation on foot, joining up in foraging flocks at night.
This juvenile was trying to hide behind some short grasses in a muddy pond. We spotted the heron and then he realized we were looking and got a little nervous.
The juvenile took flight as we were watching him and he did not proceed too far down the muddy pond. The next few images show the Juvenile in flight. After taking these images we left the heron alone and went about looking for other birds.
Our birdwatching loop brought us back by the area where the Juvenile Heron had been seen and we found the heron in a tree. We had mentioned earlier that they roost in trees and so seem quite comfortable in that environment. It was neat to see the bird in the various situations.
That concludes our look at the Black-crowned Night Heron. They are a fascinating bird.
Please let us know if you have any questions or comments.
All the best
George & Deanna
Just WOW!!!
ReplyDeleteThank you!!!